


O Tannenbaum

by oneunexpected



Category: The Underland Chronicles - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/M, I... don't really know how to write fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:15:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28320759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oneunexpected/pseuds/oneunexpected
Summary: Gregor takes Luxa to see the tree at Rockefeller Center.
Relationships: Gregor Campbell/Luxa
Comments: 7
Kudos: 13





	O Tannenbaum

**Author's Note:**

> If you are from NYC, at the end of the work, you can find my Official Apology to New Yorkers. Otherwise, enjoy!

Gregor sat in the basement of the apartment complex, staring fixedly at the air vent in front of him.  _ Come on, any minute now, _ he thought, not impatient so much as excited and perhaps a hair jittery. He’d been waiting for five minutes, well before their arranged meeting time, but he didn’t want to risk any possibility of being late. So he just sat there, staring at that vent, until after what felt like an eternity he heard the muffled voice of his girlfriend shout, “Overlander!”

Gregor grinned, got to his knees and shuffled forward to the grate, where he pried it open from the bottom and stuck his head in. “Hey—oh,  _ hi _ .” He had been expecting Luxa and Aurora, but instead found Nike carrying Howard with Luxa sitting behind him, the three of them illuminated by a torch Howard held. Nike faced the vent from a few feet below its opening, her wings spread wide to catch the updraft of currents that held them aloft. “Nike, Howard, it’s good to see you guys,” Gregor greeted.

“You, as well,” Nike purred, and Howard gave him a cordial nod.

“Where’s Aurora? I mean, she’s okay, right?”

“She is okay, yes,” Luxa said, “but she tweaked a muscle in a match today and it pains her to fly for the moment. So Howard was kind enough to offer me a ride.” Luxa looked pointedly to Howard, who was smiling, but at the same time staring daggers at Gregor.

“Oh. Thank you, Howard,” Gregor said, slightly apprehensive of the look he was receiving. Was Howard about to give him a big talk about the responsibility of dating his cousin— _ again— _ right then and there? 

But Howard simply stated, “I will be back to retrieve her in exactly five hours,” his voice pleasant, but his eyes still boring holes into Gregor. Gregor wasn’t a psychic, but he felt pretty sure he could read Howard’s thoughts:  _ I am allowing my cousin, who is not only my queen but also essentially my little sister, to go with you to an alien place she has absolutely no familiarity with, and it is your responsibility to look after her. And also, I am still not sure of this dating business in the first place, so you doubly had better not mess this up. _ Or something along those lines.

“Well, we’ll see you then,” Gregor said with what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

“Yes, we will  _ see you then _ ,” Luxa emphasized, using an almost teasing tone. She shoved Howard gently in the shoulder and grinned as she spoke. “I will be fine, quit your worrying.” Luxa reached out towards Gregor, who grabbed both her forearms and pulled with all his might. He heard a  _ thump-thump _ as her feet caught her from smacking into the wall below the grate, and with one final heave, he tugged her through the vent. Except he had overestimated the amount of force it would take, and he pulled way too hard, resulting in him falling onto his back and pulling Luxa down next to him.

Luxa laughed as she sat up. “There has to be a superior way of doing this,” she said, smiling down at him.

“We’ll get the hang of it,” he replied, smiling back. He pushed himself up and the two of them poked their heads back into the grate, where Nike and Howard were still waiting.

“Thank you again for taking me here,” Luxa said. “I will see you here shortly.”

Howard’s eyes flicked back and forth from Luxa to Gregor, and his serious expression finally melted into a smile. “Have fun, you two.” And then he and Nike were gone, plummeting into the mists below.

Gregor stood up and looked at Luxa. “He’s going to kill me if we’re even a minute late getting back.”

Luxa tittered. “He will do no such thing! He is—what is it that you say—all bark and no bite,” she said. “But perhaps we should hurry. Not for his sake, but for mine. I can hardly wait, I have been dreaming about this for years.”

“Then by all means, let’s go,” Gregor said, and he turned around and walked up the stairs leading out of the laundry room. Gregor had brought Luxa to the Overland once before to eat dinner in Mrs. Cormaci’s apartment. It had allowed Luxa to receive a bite size of Overland life and experience things like listening to the radio and flicking on and off light switches, and most importantly, it had provided an opportunity for her to enjoy Mrs. Cormaci’s famed cooking, but they hadn’t left the apartment; Gregor had figured that would be too overwhelming. But tonight, they were venturing out to see the Rockefeller Tree being lit. Gregor hoped the experience wouldn’t be too much for her, but he thought she’d really enjoy all the holiday decorations up around the city.

“So, we’re going to see Mrs. Cormaci first so you can get bundled up in Overland clothes, and I hope you’re hungry, because she will definitely force you to eat her food, too,” Gregor said as they walked up the many stairs leading to the apartment. It would have been easier to take the stairs to the lobby and take the elevator from there, but Gregor wasn’t sure how he’d explain a super pale stranger in weird clothes suddenly appearing from the basement to anyone who might be in the lobby. So they sucked it up and hiked up the stairs. 

After way too many flights of stairs, they reached Mrs. Cormaci’s apartment. The door swung open before Gregor could even finish knocking.

“Luxa! Hello, dear, how are you?”

“I am well,” Luxa said warmly, “thank you for asking. And yourself?”

“Oh, same as always. But we can chit-chat later; you kids need to get going if you’re going to make it to see the tree in time.” Mrs. Cormaci whirled around, and Gregor and Luxa followed her into the apartment. “I’ve got lots of clothes for you, Luxa, let me go get them. While you’re waiting, I set out some dinner for you two. It’s cold out, so I figured you’d better get some food in your bellies to keep you warm.”

Gregor wasn’t sure if that was exactly how keeping warm worked, but he had long since learned not to question Mrs. Cormaci on any excuse she used to give away her food, so he led Luxa to the dining table where two steaming bowls of chicken noodle soup waited for them.

As they began eating their soup, Mrs. Cormaci reemerged holding a stack of clothing with a pair of boots balanced precariously on top. “Alright, let’s see what we got here,” she said, setting the stack down unceremoniously on the other end of the table. “Good, trusty pair of duck boots here, and some wool socks to go with,” she listed, taking them off the stack and setting them next to one another. “Jeans and a pair of leggings to go under them. Coat—” Mrs. Cormaci set aside a big black puffer parka—“ mittens, scarf, and a stocking cap. I thought the pom-pom was cute.” She studied the pile for a moment with her hands on her hips. “Maybe a little overkill, but this cold front is gonna chill you to the bone. It’s already below freezing and it’s just getting colder from here. I hope none of this stuff is too out of style, it’s mostly my daughter’s old stuff, but I can promise it’ll keep you warm.”

Gregor looked at Luxa, hoping she wasn’t too thrown by the pile of things in front of her. It  _ was _ , overkill, but the Underland was always temperate, and Gregor had been worried that Luxa would hate the cold. Luxa’s eyes were wide, but she smiled up at Mrs. Cormaci. “Thank you very much. With these, I am sure I will keep warm, and ideally covered to the point I am indistinguishable from other residents of the city.”

That was one of the perks of bringing Luxa to the surface in the middle of a cold front. They wouldn’t have to worry about people questioning her veiny, near-translucent skin if people couldn’t see any of it.

Mrs. Cormaci’s face suddenly lit up with realization. “Oh, I nearly forgot! I told one of my friends that Gregor was taking his girlfriend from out of town to see the tree—” Gregor found himself blushing in spite of himself— "and she insisted on giving you guys a present. Let me go grab it.” Mrs. Cormaci shuffled out of the room and returned a moment later holding two…

“Christmas sweaters!” Mrs. Cormaci announced with utter glee. She handed Gregor one and Luxa the other. Gregor’s was fairly simple, green with white snowflakes, reindeer, and striping patterns knitted in. He looked up to Luxa, who grinned and held hers up to show him. Hers was much more intricate. It was navy, the torso depicting a Christmas tree decked out in multicolored ornaments and a big star in the middle of a snowfield.

“Wow, Mrs. Cormaci, these are…” Gregor started, but he really couldn’t bring himself to finish his sentence.

“Hideous, aren’t they?” Mrs. Cormaci said, her voice dripping with pride.

Okay, so, she was aware of it. “Luxa, we really don’t have to wear these if you don’t want. I mean, they’re probably kinda itchy, and—“

“This is an Overland Christmas tradition, no?” Luxa interjected, looking at him critically.

Gregor scratched the back of his head. “Uh, yeah, for some people. Mostly for octogenarians.”

Mrs. Cormaci tutted and Luxa smirked and rolled her eyes at him. “They are wonderful and we shall wear them,” Luxa declared. “A lovely gift. Mrs. Cormaci, please thank your friend on our behalf.”

Mrs. Cormaci smiled. “I’ll be sure to tell her. Now, slurp down the rest of that soup, you kids are going to miss it!”

She sent Luxa to the bathroom to change. Gregor pulled his sweater on over his t-shirt. He sat back down at the kitchen table, when suddenly Mrs. Cormaci materialized behind him out of seemingly nowhere to cram a hat down over his ears. “You’re gonna freeze, child. You have your coat, yes? And your wallet? Your phone has enough charge?”

Gregor snickered at her fussing over him. “Yes, Mrs. Cormaci, I’ve got all of that. We’ll survive.”

“Good.” She patted his shoulder and took a seat next to him. “You excited?”

Gregor nodded. The Rockefeller Tree might not have been a particularly big deal to him after years and years of walking past it, but he couldn’t wait to see Luxa’s reaction to it.

“Nervous?”

Gregor smiled sheepishly and nodded again. “A little, yeah. I mean, I can’t help but feel her first outing should have been something a little more casual. A walk in Central Park, or something. Less lights, less people. I just hope she likes it.”

“I’m sure she will,” Mrs. Cormaci. “If nothing else, she’s got you. I’m sure you’ll make a good tour guide.”

Gregor heard the door to Mrs. Cormaci’s bedroom click open, and looked up to see Luxa, dwarfed by the bulky winter gear. Gregor grinned. “You look  _ adorable _ .” Luxa scowled at him, which, in Gregor’s opinion, failed to do anything but make her look even cuter. It was hard for even her to look intimidating when swallowed in a giant parka.

Luxa gestured to the zipper on the coat. “I could not figure out how to fasten this,” she admitted begrudgingly.

Gregor stood and stepped in front of her. “You just line up the zips next to one another, and then you just kinda…” He took the bottom of the jacket and zipped it up to Luxa’s neck. “…Like that.”

Luxa smiled up at him, and only then did he notice how close they were standing. “Thank you,” she said softly, and Gregor felt himself blush yet again.

Mrs. Cormaci cleared her throat. “Alright, lovebirds, keep it moving. You’re going to be late!” She waved her hands at them. “Get!”

Gregor grabbed his coat and slung it on as they moved towards the door. “Thanks for dinner, Mrs. Cormaci, see you later!”

“Swing back by, if you have time. If you’re lucky, I’ll make you some hot chocolate. You’ll need it after braving this weather,” Mrs. Cormaci said. “Now, get going, I mean it!”

They took the elevator down to the lobby, since Luxa was now in Overland clothing and caused less suspicion. “There’s way too much to explain in the amount of time we have, but I’ll try to tell you about as much as I can. And if you have specific questions, just let me know. Or, if you just want me to shut up, once again, just let me know. Your call,” Gregor rambled as the elevator doors opened.

They stepped into the lobby, and Luxa took his hand and gave it a squeeze. “I will let you know.”

Gregor paused for a moment when they stepped onto the street. Luxa looked around for a moment, and then began volleying questions at him. What did the stripes on the road mean, and what were the red, yellow, and green lights hanging above them? Where did the staircases leading underground go to? What were “Starbucks,” and why did they seem to be on every street corner? Gregor tried his best to answer her as thoroughly but quickly as possible, because every time he finished a sentence, she had another question.

They made their way through Manhattan like that, Luxa’s mind running at a million miles per hour and Gregor doing his best to keep up. As they got closer to Rockefeller Center, her questions became less frequent and the sidewalks grew more crowded. Gregor kept talking, though, and he was in the middle of a spiel about taxis, only a few blocks from their destination, when he looked over to Luxa and saw her staring transfixed at something in the distance. He stopped mid-sentence and followed her gaze. She was looking at a little stand where a man was selling all sorts of holiday accessories. The vendor was handing a boy one of those gaudy necklaces made out of Christmas lights that actually lit up.

“Those lights, like the ones we have seen on the buildings… they are also worn as jewelry?” Luxa inquired, sounding slightly awed.

Gregor chuckled. “Sure, they can be, but it’s sort of a novelty. Like tacky Christmas sweaters. Want me to get you one?”

Luxa tore her eyes away from the stand and looked at him with wide eyes. “Oh, surely to wear light in such a way, it must be expensive,” she demurred after a moment of hesitation. But Gregor could tell she was enamored by the little strings of light.

“Nah, not expensive at all. Besides, it’ll be a good keepsake. You can bring it back and show Hazard and everyone else,” Gregor reasoned, and led her towards the stand before she could object.

Before long, Gregor was setting the necklace over Luxa’s head and flicking the little switch on, and then they continued their trek. The streets were packed by then, bustling with tourists hoping to catch a glimpse of the tree. Luxa’s grip on his hand tightened as they shouldered their way through the throng.

“Here we go,” Gregor said as they turned off of Fifth Avenue. He huffed and stood on his tip-toes to try to find a path for them through the crowd to a spot where they could see. This last half of a block would be the hardest part of their journey. He could hear some lady singing in what he figured was the final performance before they lit the tree, and he pushed his way through the best he could, apologizing to the scores of people he bumped into as he went. After what seemed like an eternity, he looked up and sighed with relief at the sight of the Prometheus statue, a now empty stage, and behind them both, the crown jewel: the ginormous conifer, topped with its brilliant white star.

He turned to Luxa. “Can you see?”

She craned her neck and stood on her toes, then shook her head. “Not particularly well.”

“Well, let me give you a piggy-back ride, then.”

Luxa raised an eyebrow. “A ‘ _ piggy-back ride _ ?’”

“Yeah, you know, the thing where you jump on someone’s back. Where you wrap your arms around their neck, and your legs kinda go over their hips…”

Luxa still looked at him quizzically. “Will you not get tired? I am heavier than I appear.”

Gregor laughed. “Come on, Luxa, I’ll be fine,” he assured. Luxa shook her head at him in an amused sort of way, but clambered onto his back.

“Better?” He asked.

“Better,” she murmured, leaning her head against his as she looked out at the tree.

Just then, the voices of the hosts rang out across the plaza as they introduced the mayor as the official tree-lighter—a chorus of boos and cheers rang out—and then they began counting down. “Five! Four! Three! Two! One!”

The tree illuminated all at once, thousands of multicolored, glowing bulbs blinking out at the city. Even from their vantage point at least a hundred yards away, Gregor could see the crystal ornaments gleaming, tossing and throwing the light from one to another like it was a game of catch. Gregor heard Luxa gasp quietly, and he turned his head to look at her.

“Beautiful,” she breathed. The light glinted in her eyelashes and the bit of white-gold hair peaking out from her hat, soaked into her translucent skin nearly to the point it glowed, reflected in her violet eyes as if they were a mirror.

“Yeah,” Gregor whispered back, still studying her face. They stood there for a few minutes, taking it all in, listening to the cheers of the crowd. “Let me know when you’re ready to go. Mrs. Cormaci was right, it is pretty chilly, and Howard would kill me if you caught a cold.”

Luxa laughed. “I will not keep us much longer. I am sorry to make you linger, but I would like to stay a moment longer. To make sure I commit it to memory.” So they waited there another minute or so before Luxa hopped off of his back.

Just as they were beginning to make their way through the crowd, a man stumbled straight into them. “Whoa, sorry, there,” he slurred as Luxa staggered into the person standing behind her. “Watch it,” they hissed, and Luxa stammered an apology as she regained her balance. Gregor reached out and took her hand, and Luxa grabbed it back with a vice-like grip. She looked up at him, eyes a little too wild, breaths a little too quick. Gregor, who had seen plenty of panic attacks start that way, said, “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

It wasn’t until they were a few blocks away on a much quieter side street when Luxa began to relax her grip. “I am sorry, I did not mean to seem so… unbalanced. I do not know why, but suddenly it just felt as if I were trapped,” she said.

Gregor stopped short. “Hey, look at me. It’s not your fault and  _ I’m _ sorry. I should have warned you better about how many people would be there. Maybe we shouldn’t have started with such a big event—”

“Oh, Gregor, please do not let that worry you. The tree was perfect, and I would not have traded it for any other thing,” Luxa interrupted, squeezing his hand. 

Gregor nodded and was about to respond when suddenly he caught the scent of something heavenly. He looked up and realized they were across the street from a little pizza shop. He checked the clock; they had just enough time. “Hey, are you hungry from all this walking? I’ve got something for you to try.”

Gregor bought two slices of cheese pizza and a root beer for them to drink, and they took seats at the shop’s one small table. He watched her expectantly as she took the first bite. “Well?”

Luxa chewed and swallowed thoughtfully before reporting, “I enjoy it.”

Okay, so that was a little underwhelming. “It’s good, right? Isn’t it delicious?”

“It is good, yes,” Luxa replied evenly, taking another bite.

Gregor scoffed and shook his head. “Her first bite of the most wonderful food in the history of all food, and all she can say is ‘I enjoy it.’ Unbelievable.”

“Oh, pardon me, I should say I have never lived until I tried this baked bread and cheese. The rest of my life, every meal will disappoint me knowing it is not this one. I am not sure I will be able to continue on,” Luxa retorted.

Gregor laughed through a mouthful of pizza. “Now you’re making sense.”

The corners of Luxa’s mouth turned up and she looked down at her plate. “You told me all those years ago that one day you would take me to the surface and buy me pizza,” she said softly. “Do you remember that?”

“I do. In the Waterway. Well, I think I’ve given you a lot more than you bargained for tonight.”

Luxa grinned. “It seemed so impossible, at the time. Nothing more than a dream. And now, here we are.”

“Here we are,” Gregor echoed, and they finished the rest of their pizza in comfortable silence.

They walked back to the apartment building at a brisk pace through the frigid air. Luxa resumed interrogating Gregor on Overland objects and customs, and before he knew it, they were back at Mrs. Cormaci’s door. “Hope she’s still awake,” Gregor muttered as they waited after he knocked.

Mrs. Cormaci opened the door and waved them into the apartment. A Christmas song sung by a crooner she must have been listening to spilled out into the hallway. “I’m half shocked to see that you didn’t die of hypothermia out there. Come on, I’ll get your cocoa,” she said as she led them back to the kitchen table.

Gregor and Luxa shucked off their hats and coats, and Luxa was peeling off her mittens and scarf when she asked, “What do they do with the tree when it is not this time of year? Do they decorate it in other seasons?”

Gregor blinked. “Well… The tree’s dead. So they take it down. It’s a new one every year.

Luxa gaped at him. “ _ Dead _ ? They choose a magnificent specimen like that every year just to kill it?”

“Okay, yeah, it sounds barbaric when you say it like that,” Gregor laughed, “but luckily, there are a ton of trees like that. And the wood gets used to build, like, houses for people who need it, so at least it’s not a complete waste.”

“Cocoa’s ready!” Mrs. Cormaci declared, sitting down two steaming mugs of hot chocolate on the table. She sat down next to them, and asked Luxa about everything she saw, her favorite part of the evening, the things she found most strange about the Overland. Gregor just listened to them chat over the sound of the Christmas music, and before he knew it, their mugs were empty, and it was time to go. Luxa went to change back into her Underland clothes and reemerged with her necklace of lights and tacky Christmas sweater tucked under her arm.

“Looks like you’re all ready to go,” Mrs. Cormaci said, standing up and holding out her arms. “Luxa, my dear, thank you for coming to see us.”

“The pleasure was mine,” Luxa replied as she stepped into the hug. “I have been so grateful for your hospitality. Thank you.”

“Oh, any time, of course,” Mrs. Cormaci said. “Now, you two have better get going, because I imagine Luxa has been missed in Regalia.”

Gregor glanced at the time. “Yeah, Howard’s gonna be here any minute, we should head out. Thank you for everything, Mrs. Cormaci.”

She waved him off with a smile, and Gregor and Luxa headed back for the basement. When they reached the grate, Luxa wheeled around to face him. “This has been wonderful. More than I ever could have imagined. Truly, Gregor, I cannot thank you enough.”

Gregor beamed. “You’re welcome. I’m really glad you had a good time. Hopefully, we can do something like this again soon.”

Luxa nodded and then stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him. It was gentle, sweet, and he wished it could have lasted more than a second. She broke away and said, “I love you.”

Gregor said, “I love you, too,” and then there was nothing more to be said. He turned around and opened the grate, where he found Howard and Nike already waiting. “I trust you had a good time?” Howard asked, looking much more like his usual friendly self than he had earlier, now that they were back safe and sound.

“I’ll let her tell you all about it,” Gregor replied with a grin, and stepped aside to let Luxa climb into the hole in the wall. When she was dangling by one hand, she looked up at Gregor one last time and said, “See you soon.” She let go, absorbed at once by the darkness and surely caught moments later by Nike, and as the vent clanged shut, Gregor thought that those three words were one of the most wonderful promises in the universe.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> AN APOLOGY TO NEW YORKERS: I do not live in New York. All of my knowledge about the tree lighting ceremony comes from archival footage and tourism guides. I read that you have to get to the tree at least five hours before the ceremony to stand a shot at getting a good spot to see from, so I do apologize that I allowed Gregor and Luxa to essentially waltz right up right before the end of the ceremony. 
> 
> Anyways. Thank you for reading! Happy Holidays!


End file.
